The Major Lift
by Misgiving Writer
Summary: It's a strange thing, to hear this at a Gathering. To see Firestar turn away, not just one cat, but an entire Clan in need. Even stranger is the look in his eyes - so broken, so distant. This is not a cry of triumph. This is a cold hallelujah.


A/N: This was written for Mossshine of the Stars brilliant idea, found on the Warriors Challenge Forum (link in my profile). It's labeled, Theme Music - An Experiment, and was a blast to do! Also, this is my first time ever writing for an actual canon-cat. Hope I did an alright job!

* * *

_It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth, _  
_The minor fall, _  
_The major lift, _  
_The baffled king, composing hallelujah_

* * *

"WindClan has been stealing prey from our territory." Firestar announces, and his voice is flat and empty when he does. The sound matches his eyes, cold and cruel, and draws the gaze of every cat in the clearing.

It's silent for a moment, as everyone struggles to work through what has just been said. What an entire Clan has been accused of doing - and in the middle of Leaf-bare, no less! The one season when every cat knows that they need each piece of prey available. When they know that one mouse taken could mean the death of a kit.

WindClan as being accused of breaking an unspoken law.

Never steal when the snow falls.

Unspoken, but always followed.

Somewhere in the crowd, a tom lets out a yowl of protest. Others pick up the call, slinging words such as liar and mousebrain. Below the rock that the ginger tabby stands on, the cats of ThunderClan shift uncomfortably.

Dustpelt pulls back his upper lip in a snarl, narrowing his amber eyes in the direction of Gorsefang. Brackenfur moves closer to the elders, worried and confused because this isn't what should be happening. Not here, not at a Gathering.

Deadfoot should not have his claws out and Tallstar should not be looking at Firestar that way, with hatred and anger in his eyes.

"WindClan have not taken any of your prey, Firestar." Tallstar tells the other leader, tail flicking irritably. "And we do not appreciate your claims."

"They aren't just claims, Tallstar. They're facts." Firestar's voice is still empty, but the gaze that he turns on the black and white tom is far from that.

_"Spottedleaf?" Firestar asked. Though he wasn't looking at her, he could hear the star-pelted she-cat move closer to him._

_"Yes, Firestar? You said that you needed to speak to me. Is everything alright?" She questioned, worry clear in her voice._

_The newest leader of ThunderClan rarely called on StarClan for help. Of course, they still give him help. Still guided his paw steps - because he believed in them and they knew that. Just like they knew that something was very, very wrong._

_For a long moment, the ginger tom just kept staring at the sky. Here, in his dream-world, it was empty of stars. Empty of the moon, and that was something that Spottedleaf had always wondered about. Most cats dreamt of a light filed sky and a flower covered meadow, not darkness and tangled trees and shadows that were shaped likes strange beasts._

_But she had never mentioned it. Because Firestar was their chosen cat and, even if he didn't want to be their chosen cat, he didn't have a choice._

_"I'm worried." Firestar said finally, his soft voice breaking through the stillness. "WindClan...They're losing prey fast this Leaf-bare. The frost hit them hard this moon and they've already lost one elder. Tallstar asked if they could hunt in the forest."_

_Spottedleaf nodded, moving to sit down beside the sun kissed leader. She wrapped her tail over her paws and then followed the tom's gaze but, as always, she couldn't see anything in the sky worth looking at. "What did you tell him?"_

_She knew, of course. Starclan had been watching when Firestar told the elder leader that he would have to consult with the rest of his Clan. They had been proud that he hadn't given in so easily, not like he normally did._

_After all, the frost had hit the forest just as hard as it had hit the Moore._

_Firestar didn't seem bothered by her question, despite the fact that he had to know she was just biding time. "I told them I had to speak with Graystripe and my warriors. And you, of course. What do you think I should do, Spottedleaf? WindClan...They could starve without our help! But at the same time, if we do help them, then we might starve..."_

_He was so kind-hearted. Unable to stand watching somecat suffer. Willing to do all that he could to save everyone. That was why they chose him._

_Spottedleaf turned away from the empty sky, looking at the cat beside her instead. She pretended to debate for a moment, eyes closed in thought, and then nodded her head once._

_The decision had been made moons ago, by StarClan as a whole. Tonight, she was just the messenger._

_"You need to tell them 'no', Firestar." She said, voice serious. "They cannot rely on ThunderClan. Not this time."_

_"W-what?" The ginger tom spun around, green eyes wide with surprise. That hadn't been the answer he'd been expecting. "What do you mean I shouldn't help them?"_

_"Firestar, you are a brave and kind cat. That is your greatest strength. But, sometimes, it is also your biggest weakness." Spottedleaf explained. She kept her voice soft, gentle, but her eyes blank. "The problem is that you can't help everyone. You are the fourth great cat, Firestar, and after you ThunderClan will find their fifth great leader."_

_"But -" Firestar started, but the she-cat just shook her head._

_"The minor fall, the major lift. The baffled leader, composing hallelujah." Spottedleaf told him, her voice barely above a whisper. "You will lead your Clan to greatness, Firestar, but you must learn to harden your heart in order to do that. Push your own feelings aside and do what you know is best for your Clan. Not any other cat's Clan."_

_And then she vanished, in a shimmer of starlight that was not welcome there. Not in Firestar's dream-world. Not in the only place that he felt truly safe, truly at home._

_Troubled, the ginger tom turned his gaze back onto the sky._

_All he could see was black._

"I've spotted your warriors on our territory, Tallstar." Firestar tells the other leader. "And I've already told you that we can't afford to lose prey! The forest has been hit by this cold just as hard as your moors have been!"

"Lies!" Tallstar hisses, ears flattening against his skull. For a moment, he forgets that he's at a Gathering. Forgets about the other two leaders standing behind them, eyes wide in wonder. Forgets that, below him, all the forest is watching. Above him, the stars look down upon him. "ThunderClan has more than enough prey!"

Firestar gives a slow shake of his head, closing his light green eyes. "No, Tallstar. We don't. I wish that I could help you, really. But...This time...I can't. WindClan must procure their own food this Leaf-bare."

A gasp rings out below them - because when has Firestar ever turned down a cat in need? When has this great tom ever not given all that he had to help another?

They cannot think of a time.

Above them, the stars seem to shine all the brighter. The light reflects off of both leaders eyes - Tallstar, angry and betrayed, Firestar, empty and distant. As though this decision, this call of ignorance, hurts him more than it hurts the gaunt cats of WindClan.

"This is a warning, Tallstar." Firestar finally meows, and his tone brokes no argument. "If ThunderClan scents your cats on our territory again, we will take action."

Because, if nothing else, Firestar trusts StarClan. They will never use him, never abuse him, never lie to him. They are the only cats that have always stood by his side, no matter what choice he has been forced to make.

And if they want him to lead his Clan, and his Clan alone, to hallelujah...Then that is what he will do.

* * *

_And it's not a cry you hear at night, _  
_It's not somebody who's seen the light, _  
_It's a cold and broken, _  
_Hallelujah..._


End file.
